Northern Ireland Prison Service: Corporate and Business Plan 2004–07

Baroness Amos: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State has made the following Ministerial Statement.
	I have placed copies of the Northern Ireland Prison Service's corporate and business plan for 2004–07 in the Libraries of both Houses.
	The corporate and business plan contains key performance targets I have set for the service for 2004–05. These are:
	1. No escape for top and high-risk prisoners.
	2. No more than three escapes per 1,000 medium and low-risk prisoners.
	3. The number of staff assaulted by prisoners is less than a ratio of five per 100 prisoners.
	4. The number of prisoners assaulted by prisoners is less than a ratio of six per 100 prisoners.
	5. An average of at least 18 hours' constructive activity per week for each sentenced prisoner.
	6. An average of at least nine hours' constructive activity per week for each remand prisoner.
	7. To ensure 82.5 per cent of prisoners serving six months or more are working to a resettlement plan and that 95 per cent of lifers work to a resettlement plan, including preparation of the plan, in the first six months from sentence.
	8. Deliver at least 85 per cent of the planned training days associated with the agreed corporate training priorities.
	9. Reduce the rate of absenteeism to an annual average of no more than 19 days per head.
	10. Lay the annual report and audited accounts before Parliament prior to the summer Recess.
	11. Ensure the average cost per prisoner place does not exceed the target to be agreed with HM Treasury.
	The Government have committed substantial resource to implementing the Steele report, so that staff remain in full control. This does not mean any reduction in the need to tackle the other costs which make for an excessively high cost per prisoner place.
	Also, in light of developments following the Steele report, and to support the development of partnerships with a wider range of statutory and voluntary agencies beyond the criminal justice system, I have agreed some adjustments to the service's statement of purpose, which now reads as follows:
	"The Northern Ireland Prison Service, through our staff, serves the community by keeping in secure, safe and humane custody those committed by the courts; by working with prisoners and with other organisations seeks to reduce the risk of reoffending; and in so doing aims to protect the public and to contribute to peace and stability in Northern Ireland."

House of Lords: Peers' Mileage and Bicycle Allowances

Lord Brabazon of Tara: The resolution of the House of 20 July 1994 provided for the rate of motor mileage allowance to be uprated annually on 1 April in line with the increase in the retail prices index over the previous 12 months to March.
	Accordingly, with effect from 1 April 2004, the rate of motor mileage allowance was increased from 56.1 pence to 57.6 pence for the first 20,000 miles for the period to 31 March 2005. Further mileage in this period is now payable at the rate of 26.6 pence per mile (increased from 25.9 pence per mile).
	The resolution of the House of 20 May 1998 provided for the rate of the bicycle allowance to be uprated annually on 1 April in line with the increase in the retail prices index over the previous 12 months to March.
	Accordingly, with effect from 1 April 2004, the rate of the bicycle allowance was increased from 7.2 pence to 7.4 pence per mile.

Armed Forces: Individual Training and Education

Lord Bach: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ivor Caplin) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	Our Armed Forces have an enviable reputation throughout the world for their professional delivery of operational military capability in a vast spectrum of roles. These range from war fighting to the complex and often subtle requirements of peace support operations and counter-terrorism; besides turning their hand, as they have done in recent years, to providing support to the civil community assisting with firefighting, flood relief and the foot and mouth outbreak. Most who come across Service personnel acknowledge that they have sound essential military skills and operate within an ethos that differs from that generally found within the sphere of civilian employment. Yet those who join the Services are not fundamentally different from the rest of society. What turns a young man or woman into a Service person, capable of taking on successfully the variety of challenging roles which our country demands of them, is the training and education undertaken by Servicemen and women throughout their careers.
	The Ministry of Defence is one of the largest providers of training and education to the 16-plus age group in the UK. The initial training delivered to new recruits is geared to provide them with the essential skills and knowledge to be capable of operating effectively in often unpredictable, violent, dangerous and stressful environments from the outset of their careers. The MoD seeks to develop each individual to his or her maximum potential. Service personnel are given training and education to improve upon their latent ability. Some who join may lack basic skills while others have graduate qualifications. The scope and scale of the training and education provision is considerable, and spans the whole length of a career in the Armed Forces. Not only does this help to recruit and retain people, but, equally importantly, when Service personnel return to civilian employment, they take with them skills of value to society.
	I am therefore pleased to announce that today I have placed in the Library of the House a policy paper, entitled Individual Training and Education in the Armed Forces. The paper provides information on the MoD's wide spectrum of training and education and explains the skills agenda to which this operates. At its core lies the fundamental requirement to prepare Servicemen and women to deliver operational capability. It includes insights into the key stages of initial training and the training environment, and highlights the MoD's determination to remain at the forefront of developing skills for the 21st century.

Defence Dental Agency: Key Targets 2004–05

Lord Bach: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ivor Caplin) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	The following key targets have been set for the chief executive of the Defence Dental Agency (DDA) for the financial year 2004–05:
	Key Target 1: Meeting Operational Manpower Requirements
	To meet 100 per cent of the Commander in Chief's requirements for DDA manpower to support operations.
	Key Target 2: Dental Risk
	To achieve 90 per cent of all Service personnel in dental risk categories A and B by 31 March 2005.
	Key Target 3: Treatment Needs
	To reduce the treatment needs index for each Service to the following: RN at or below 375; Army at or below 600; RAF at or below 375 by 31 March 2005.
	Key Target 4: Military Training
	To ensure that 80 per cent of all DDA personnel, whose medical category permits, achieve their Service's annual mandatory individual military training.

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister: Annual Report 2004

Lord Rooker: On Friday, my right honourable friend the First Secretary of State and Deputy Prime Minister made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	The Chief Secretary to the Treasury and I are pleased to present to Parliament the annual report of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for 2004. It sets out the achievements of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
	The aim of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is to create sustainable communities—places where people want to live. It is about revitalising communities, delivering sustainable economic growth, revitalising areas of neglect, improving the quality of local environment and protecting the countryside.
	This, our second annual report, details an impressive array of achievements in every area of our work. We are driving up the quality and supply of housing, speeding up the planning system, reducing the incidence of rough sleeping and the number of homeless families in B&B accommodation, improving our public spaces and giving people a bigger say in what happens in their regions. We are delivering strong, effective local government services and devolving power to local neighbourhoods. We are also renewing and regenerating neighbourhoods particularly in our most deprived areas and reducing social exclusion.
	But we must not be complacent and we know that more remains to be done. We will therefore continue to work hard to deliver our aim of creating sustainable communities that provide a better quality of life, now and in future generations.

Homeless Households: Temporary Accommodation

Lord Rooker: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	I am pleased to announce today the significant achievement against the Government's bed and breakfast reduction target that, by March 2004, local authorities should ensure that no homeless family with children should have to live in a bed and breakfast hotel except in an emergency, and even then for no longer than six weeks.
	Figures collected by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister show a 99.3 per cent reduction in the number of homeless families with children living in bed and breakfast hotels for longer than six weeks, and who were placed there by a local housing authority as a discharge of a homelessness duty, over the two years since March 2002 when the target was set. Local authorities reported a total of only 26 families with children in B&B in excess of six weeks as of 31 March compared to an estimated 3,500 to 4,000 homeless families with children placed long-term in bed and breakfast hotels in March 2002. This reduction reflects the excellent achievement of local authorities working with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. A total of 328, or 95 per cent, of local authorities met the bed and breakfast target.
	In London, where the highest concentrations of homelessness exist and where the highest number of families had been accommodated in bed and breakfast hotels, there were no homeless families who had been in B&B for longer than six weeks on 31 March.
	Figures collected also show that the total number of homeless families with children in B&B was reduced by 88 per cent from an estimated 6,730 in March 2002 to 780 in March 2004. This is the first sustained reduction in total use of bed and breakfast to house homeless families for over a decade.
	The table below shows the breakdown of bed and breakfast figures for March 2004 for the sixteen local authorities that failed to meet the target. A table showing the breakdown for all local authorities is available in the Libraries of the House. Further information is also available on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website (www.odpm.gov.uk).
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will continue to work with local authorities, voluntary sector organisations and other stakeholders to sustain this target and our successful reductions in rough sleeping. We will also continue to work with stakeholders on tackling and preventing wider homelessness problems more effectively.
	Numbers of families with children in B&B accommodation on 31 March 2004
	
		
			  Local Authority Region No. of FWC in B&B No. in B&B 6 weeks Comments 
			 1. Waveney Eastern 17 7 It is disappointing that Waveney predicted a lower number of FWC in B&B for longer than six weeks but was then unable to match the success of other authorities facing similar conditions.5 FWC moved out of B&B by 19 April1 FWC moved out of B&B on 29 April1 FWC due to move out of B&B on 5 May 
			 2. Gloucester South West 10 2 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 5 April1 FWC housed pending review outcome then moved out of B&B on 26 April 
			 3. Arun South East 5 2 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 7 April1 FWC housed pending review outcome then moved out of B&B on 28 April 
			 4. South Somerset South West 6 2 Both FWC moved out of B&B on 1 April 
			 5. Erewash East Midlands 10 2 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 1 April1 FWC moved out of B&B on 2 April 
			 6. Crawley South East 11 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 1 April 
			 7. Swale South East 7 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 22 April 
			 8. North Dorset South West 1 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 16 April 
			 9. North Wiltshire South West 3 1 FWC housed pending review outcome then moved out of B&B on 22 April 
			 10. Purbeck South West 1 1 Large FWC, identifying suitable large property has delayed rehousing. Provisional date of 7 May for move out of B&B 
			 11. Rushcliffe East Midlands 2 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 8 April 
			 12. Harrogate Yorkshire & Humber 1 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 2 April 
			 13. North Shropshire West Midlands 3 1 FWC housed pending review outcome then moved out of B&B on 5 April 
			 14. Surrey Heath South East 2 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 8 April 
			 15. Torridge South West 1 1 FWC housed pending review outcome,re housing plan depends on review decision.FWC still in B&B 
			 16. Vale Royal North West 3 1 FWC moved out of B&B on 12 April 
		
	
	The table shows the 31 March 2004 monthly monitoring figures for homeless families with children (FWC) in B&B accommodation for the 16 authorities that failed to meet the target.
	All local authorities that failed to meet the target provided details of the families concerned. A number of families are described as "housed pending review outcome". In these cases the families have submitted an appeal against the authority's decision on their homelessness application. In such instances the local authority can choose to continue to house the family under discretionary powers.

BBC: New Services Review

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: My right honourable friend, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Tessa Jowell) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	I have today announced the start of the independent reviews of the BBC's new digital radio and television services along with the names of the two individuals who will conduct these studies.
	The services concerned are: BBC Three; BBC Four; Cbeebies; CBBC; 1Xtra; BBC Asian Network; BBC Five Live Sports Extra; BBC 6 Music; and BBC 7. I have also published today the BBC's submission on these services, an electronic copy of which is available in the Libraries of both Houses.
	I have announced previously my intention to appoint one reviewer for the digital television channels and one for the digital radio channels. I am pleased to be able to confirm the appointment of Patrick Barwise to the former position and Tim Gardam to the latter.
	The reviews will begin immediately and will run concurrently. In accordance with the conditions that I laid down when giving my approval for the BBC to develop these new digital services, both reviews will include both a period of public consultation and a market impact study. I have asked both reviewers to submit their reports to me by the end of August 2004.

Business Link Website

Lord Sainsbury of Turville: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	The Department of Trade and Industry has transformed its services to businesses by listening to the needs and priorities of business people.
	I am today launching a one-stop website for business. Businesslink.gov.uk will act as a gateway for information and support from across government.
	The new DTI-sponsored site removes the confusing array of advice about government services that up to now has confronted businesses—particularly small businesses. Businesslink.gov is the result of a successful collaboration involving a wide range of government departments and agencies: the DTI, HM Treasury, the Office of the e-Envoy, the Small Business Service, the Inland Revenue, HM Customs and Excise, the Health and Safety Executive, the Department for Education and Skills, the Environment Agency, ACAS and Companies House.
	For the first time ever one site provides quick and easy online access for firms needing information about funding and services provided by departments and agencies, including advice on starting up a business, taxation, employing people and health and safety.
	Services include opportunities for businesses to register for e-filing with Customs and Excise, the Inland Revenue and Companies House in one go as well as a filter to help users to identify which licences they need to trade.
	Advice is provided in clear language on issues which businesses have identified as important and relevant to their needs. It is supported by practical tools to achieve results and therefore reduce the time that businesses have to spend on regulations and other matters.
	Work has now largely been completed on the radical restructuring of the DTI's business support to create products that promote enterprise innovation and best practice to meet customer need for a streamlined range of products that are easy to access.
	Four of these new products were released in 2003: grant for research and development, knowledge transfer partnerships, grant for investigating an innovative idea and the small firms loan guarantee.
	Five new support products became available to businesses during April this year. These are: collaborative research and development, knowledge transfer networks, access to best business practice, support to implement best business practice and selective finance for investment in England.
	Small and medium-sized businesses will be able to access these products through Business Link. Larger corporates and business organisations can access them through the DTI while the regional development agencies will deliver products which deal with specific regional issues. Detailed information about all these products is available to businesses through the business support directory available on Businesslink.gov.
	In the development of these products I have been advised by an expert investment committee that includes and is chaired by independent business members. The committee will ensure that the impact of DTI products is thoroughly evaluated and that there is a clear economic rationale for the support we provide.
	The closure of business support schemes that the DTI has funded in the past is progressing as quickly as possible but at a pace which meets outstanding commitments.